Does Microsoft Understand the Consumer Web?
So I came across a blog entry that my good friend Fat Guppy wrote today. Although the content was blatantly untrue and jumps to soooo many wrong conclusions, it was nevertheless amusing and entertaining. Anyway, I don’t blame Guppy – he’s just doing his job. 
So as I was about to add a snide comment to his post, guess what did our good friend Windows Live greet me with?
To add a comment, you must sign in with your Windows Live ID (a Microsoft account like Hotmail, Messenger, or MSN). Sign in
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Sigh… Microsoft still misses the point. The whole concept of social media and social networking services like Windows Live Spaces is to facilitate and encourage unstructured conversations in the wild. The more conversation you have, the more traffic you get, and the better you can monetize it.
Putting up artificial barriers like forcing a potential commentator like me to register for a Windows Live ID just to add a comment simply stops me in my tracks and forces me to ignore the post entirely. Is it a wonder that most blog posts I see on Spaces has few comments, less conversation, and absolutely zero buzz? When is the last time you saw a Spaces page being the origin of a Internet meme du jour?
Unlike many people, I actually have a lot of respect for Microsoft as a company, particularly for how they developed and shaped consumer computing. Therefore, you would think that they should know what consumers want with regards to the consumer web.
Maybe that’s why they know they desperately need Yahoo? Let the posturing begin!
